Subtrakr Weekly Roundup #46

Discovery+ raised US prices a week after Skydance closed on Warner Bros. Discovery. Disney+ raised every UK plan for the second year in a row. Apple added camera, email, and media features to iCloud+ and left the price where it was. Google is moving Gemini Pro models off the cheaper AI plan, and UK rules that require renewal notices do not start until January.

Write down the next charge date, the new amount, and the date a free period ends. A pause is not the same as a cancellation.

Discovery+ is $6.99 or $11.99

Discovery+ raised US prices on 13 October. The ad-supported plan is $6.99 a month, up $1. The ad-free plan is $11.99 a month, up $2. New subscribers pay the new rates now. Existing subscribers get 30 days' notice and see the higher price on bills dated on or after 12 November. A Skydance spokesperson said the increase was planned months before the merger closed.

The service launched in 2021 at $4.99 with ads and $6.99 without them. The cheapest tier is up about 40 percent, and the ad-free tier about 72 percent. This is the second increase since January 2025. Some of the same shows already sit on HBO Max, at $10.99 to $22.99 a month. Paramount+ runs from $8.99 to $13.99. David Ellison has said those two will become one product, with no date, name, or price, and no public plan for Discovery+.

Skydance is carrying about $80 billion in debt and targeting more than $6 billion in savings over three years. If the shows are already on HBO Max, compare the two bills before November. If Discovery+ is the only place you watch them, the decision is $1 or $2 a month.

Disney+ costs more in the UK

Disney+ raised every UK plan. New subscribers pay from 14 October. Monthly subscribers pay on the next bill on or after 18 November. Annual subscribers pay on the next bill on or after 2 December, so an earlier renewal stays on the old annual price for another year.

Standard with Ads is £6.99 a month, up £1. Standard is £11.99, up £2. Premium is £15.99, up £1. Annual Standard is £119.90, up £20, and annual Premium is £159.90, up £10. There is no annual ads plan. Twelve months of Standard paid monthly is £143.88, so the annual plan saves £23.98. Switching monthly Standard to Standard with Ads saves £60 a year. A six-month saver is £5.99, £9.99, or £11.99 a month by tier, then returns to the monthly rate unless you cancel.

Standard streams on two devices at once. Premium allows four, and costs less than two Standard plans. Disney World and Disneyland also raised tickets, Lightning Lane, and annual passes, cut two discounts, and listed 13 Disney+ subscriber perks. Disneyland dropped the Magic Key no-show rule. Record those park charges apart from the streaming bill.

iCloud+ added features and kept the price

Apple expanded iCloud+ without a price change. HomeKit Secure Video on compatible cameras now records in 4K. On-device descriptions make clips searchable in plain language, and a noteworthy-clips view pulls out the moments worth replaying. Those recordings do not count against the storage quota.

Custom Email Domain now allows 10 addresses per domain, up from three. In more than 100 countries, iCloud+ now includes Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade at no extra charge. The United States is not on that list. Select plans also get higher limits on Siri AI, Photos editing, and Image Playground, though Apple has not said which plans or what the new ceilings are. Hide My Email, iCloud Private Relay, and Apple Invites stay in the plan.

If Apple TV+ or Arcade is now inside iCloud+ where you live, cancel the separate charge. In the US the media apps remain separate, and storage and privacy are still the reason to keep the plan.

Gemini Pro leaves the $5 plan

From 13 November, Pro models in the Gemini app and in AI Mode in Search require Google AI Pro or higher. Google AI Plus keeps Flash and Flash-Lite, and older Pro chats can continue on a different model. For many people that is a move from $5 a month to $20.

The $20 plan adds YouTube Premium Lite, Gemini Pro including Gemini 4 Argon, 5TB of storage, Gemini inside other Google services, AI Studio, Playground, Google Home Premium, and Google Health Premium. That bundle is only worth it if you use the extra pieces. If Flash covers the work you do, the $5 plan still does that job after 13 November.

Egyptian university students aged 18 and over can register through 31 December for 12 months of Google AI Plus at no charge, a plan the ministry and Google value near 3,000 Egyptian pounds. It includes Gemini, Gemini Notebook, image tools, short video clips, and 400GB of storage. Students can also get up to 75 percent off Google AI Pro, and an AI Pro and YouTube Premium bundle at 70 percent off. The offer also reaches Algeria, Morocco, Iraq, and Jordan.

A pause charges you again

A Netflix cancellation screen shared by a subscriber offers a pause instead of an immediate cancel, with the line that cancel is final. Replies on the thread note that a pause runs for a set period and then billing starts again. If the goal is to stop the charge, finish the cancellation and keep the confirmation.

In the UK, that reminder still does the work the law does not. An auto-renewing subscription does not have to offer a cooling-off period, even when the price jumps or a free trial becomes paid, and providers do not currently have to warn you before renewal. From 1 January they must flag a free plan before it starts charging, give notice before an auto-renewal, and send a reminder every six months. The government estimates savings of about £400 million a year. The UK has about 155 million active subscriptions, close to 10 million unwanted, at about £14 a month each. More than 3.5 million people move from a trial price to full price without a clear prompt.

Utilities, most financial products, healthcare, rent, some education and telecoms contracts, gambling, and dated holidays sit outside the rules. Streaming, gyms, software, subscription boxes, cloud storage, and auto-renewing season tickets sit inside them. Until January, a diary entry two weeks before renewal is the protection you have.

What to record this week

Discovery+ is $6.99 with ads and $11.99 without them, on existing US bills from 12 November. UK Disney+ is £6.99, £11.99, and £15.99 a month, or £119.90 and £159.90 a year on Standard and Premium. Monthly bills change on or after 18 November, and annual bills on or after 2 December.

Cancel a separate Apple TV+ or Arcade plan if iCloud+ now includes it. Gemini Pro models leave the $5 plan on 13 November. A student AI Plus year needs an end date 12 months out. A Netflix pause needs the date billing resumes. In the UK, set the renewal reminder until the January notice rules are in force.

Sources

• iCloud+ adds HomeKit Secure Video upgrades and more perks at no extra cost
• Discovery+, Now Owned by Skydance, Hikes Prices Effective Immediately
• Discovery+ now costs up to $11.99 a month as Skydance takes over
• Disney Announces Major Rule Change, Removed Discounts, New Closures, and Added Perks
• Disney+ hikes prices again: check if you can cut costs with our tricks
• Netflix pushes 'pause' when user goes to cancel, and commenters warn it can start billing again
• Martin Lewis warns of January subscription law changes for Netflix, Spotify and Disney+
• Egypt, Google offer university students one year of free AI tools
• Your Gemini Pro Cost is Going Up Considerably